Tuesday, May 15

Today I observed for checking for understanding/assessment.  Instead of using my usual template, I decided to observe for questioning.  I didn’t have a template for this, and the first thing I will say is that if I do it again, I will certainly create one.  I basically wrote down all of the questions she asked. 

            The biggest thing I noticed was that most of her questions were a lot of knowledge questions.  There were mostly questions with a concrete right or wrong answer.  Examples include:

·      What number should we use first?

·      Is there a number between 2 and 4?

·      What’s the answer?

·      Yesterday what was the mean?

·      Which ones do I cross out?

These all had one answer that was correct.  This was more true in the math lesson, but was also evident in the writing lesson I also observed. 

            The teacher also uses many process questions, especially in math.  She uses questioning to lead students in whatever process they are doing.  For example, she often says, “What should I do next?” “What’s the next step?” “So what did I show you?  What do we do?”  or, more specifically, “How can we find the median arm span?  What can we do with these numbers so we can find the median?”.  This seems useful to the students, and helps them see what they are doing as a process with concrete steps and not as either a simple answer, and not as a huge task they are lost in (I hope anyway).  This type of questioning was also evident in the writing lesson, but looked a little different.  She used these types of questions as a way to help students brainstorm.  She had students share ideas to write about, as well as the process or key elements of writing a product or place review.  These also consisted of many knowledge questions. 

            I didn’t see a lot of HOT questions.  I really didn’t see many, if any, questions above the analysis stage.  The students just started doing mean and median, so perhaps this new topic lead to lower levels of questioning.  Even so, after students learned the material, I feel that they could have responded to a HOT question or two.  They could even use them at the beginning, for predicting or some form of brainstorming.  I think HOT questions also could have been used more in the reading lesson, especially with analyzing an example product review.

            Questioning was used in one other way that I hadn’t really anticipated.  The teacher often uses them as a way to get students back on task or to tell them they have a wrong answer.  She also says “Really?” a lot if students are doing something somewhat ridiculous.  If a student hasn’t written anything on their math page that the class is doing together, she might say, “Do you really have a blank page?” “Why didn’t you write the answer?”  “What are you supposed to have here?”  These are sort of rhetorical.  I personally wouldn’t use this approach regularly as a way to get students back on task.  It is her style though, and it is effective for her.

Questions of the Day: Was teaching your first career path?  Have you considered any other professions outside of teaching?  What are your future plans?

            Mrs. L. was not planning on becoming a teacher.  She went into college as an international business and French major.  After taking a few classes, she decided international business was definitely not for her.  She kept French, but decided to go into the education program.  Eventually, with her course load and the French program at her school, she decided French was not for her.  Right now, she is in school and is pursuing becoming a principal.  She is very excited about this.  When I initially asked her the question, however, her instant answer was, “I’ve always wanted to own a bookstore.”  Very fitting for a teacher!